1. Field of The Invention
This invention relates to a display case in the form of a sliding glass door wherein the display case is particularly useful as a greenhouse. The disclosure is primarily directed to the usage of the sliding glass door display as a greenhouse, because many novel advantages flow therefrom, but it is for illustrative purposes only. Obviously, the structure of the invention is capable of housing any desired object, and while inventive as a greenhouse, it is not limited thereto.
2. Description of Related Art
When one thinks of greenhouses, the first image that comes to mind is of a long warehouse-like building at a nursery. While these may be in the majority, greenhouses come in many other sizes and shapes as well. Some greenhouses are attached to buildings, typically windows, as shown by Thesen (U.S. Pat. No. 2,086,247) and Thompson (U.S. Pat. No. 2,932,578), or are attached to entire side walls of houses (U.S. Pat. No. 4,462,390 to Holdridge et al.). They also have been designed to enclose apartment house balconies (U.S. Pat. No. 4,414,784 to Masters). Some are constructed separate from other structures in natural surroundings, such as embedded in berms (U.S. Pat. No. 2,805,518 to Stanhope) or mounted on permanent foundations (U.S. Pat. No. 4,242,833 to Maes, Jr.). Some are portable, intended for use indoors (U.S. Pat. No. 4,291,494 to Knablein et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,505,066 to Moore, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,433,030 to Lehman). Others are essentially carts, small, portable greenhouses provided with wheels (U.S. Pat. No. 4,316,347 to A. Smith and U.S. Pat. No. 4,794,727 to K. Smith). So far as the inventors are aware, none are constructed in the form of a sliding glass door.
The present invention adds to the variety of available greenhouses by providing a small greenhouse which is a part of a sliding glass door system, allowing for advantages not enjoyed by prior greenhouses:
it does not take up otherwise usable space, for being so close to the conventional sliding glass door structure, the area over the deck where it resides is not usually occupied by other objects, e.g., deck furniture;
it does not require assembly in order to be used nor disassembly to be stored;
it is easily slidable on the sliding glass door tracks from a position in which it is open and accessible to an out-of-the-way place of storage;
the plants being grown are easily accessible when the sliding glass door greenhouse is in alignment with the opening provided through conventional sliding glass door structures and are confined to an essentially sealed box when the sliding glass door greenhouse is behind the fixed glass door; and
being viewable through the large opening provided by sliding glass door structures, it provides a setting which enhances and is enhanced by the plants and flora being grown therein.
The present invention accomplishes the above by mounting the greenhouse on a sliding glass door frame, said greenhouse being slidable along a track provided in parallel with conventional sliding glass door tracks.
For home xe2x80x9cgardenersxe2x80x9d without green thumbs, said greenhouse can house silk plants, knick-knacks, statuary, or any other item desired to be displayed through or in association with the conventional sliding glass door system.